Ummm ... I was there when the saved r/w in Fresno got discovered and used, with its history revealed quietly; it wasn't all the land needed, so there was plenty of money spent to buy & demolish houses etc., but it was enough to make some extra construction possible. The Orange County things (similar era - late 1980s thru 1990s) actually are toll roads not Lexus Lanes on a freeway, though mostly using Fastrak technology. Look at State Highways 73 south of McArthur Blvd. in Irvine, 241, 261, and 133 east of I-5. On those, you pay to play, and the tolls are variable (as with most Lexus Lanes). There was a kerfuffle a couple of years ago when they found the tolls resulted in too few people using them to cover the costs, resulting in some soul-searching about toll roads in California (they work in Florida so why not here?) and renegotiation of contracts and refinancing (lengthening the terms of) the construction bonds. Bankruptcy was technically avoided ...

Yes, there's an ongoing program to turn HOV lanes into toll lanes for local income and, theoretically, better usage of the pavement. Doesn't always work; there are some (many, actually, based on recent studies that are drawing unfavorable Fed attention) HOV lanes that, even without tolls, are too crowded (sometimes slower than the unrestricted lanes next door). Ideally, if HOV lanes with 2+ occupants are too crowded, the occupancy requirement should be bumped to 3+, but that's politically incorrect for now.